SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
from the elites-with-flawed-data-making-choices dept.
El Reg reports
With digital reaching its audience targets, the government set a 2017 date for the death of analogue FM radio in [Norway].
[...]However, the Norwegian Local Radio Association disputes the communications ministry's figure, pointing instead to Norwegian Government Statistical Bureau data that "listening to DAB radio is presently limited to 19% on a daily basis."
In an e-mail sent to Vulture South [El Reg's Australian operation], the association says the Minister of Culture's announcement swept up DVB-T and Internet radio to claim that "digital listening" had hit the 50 per cent target that triggers an FM switch-off.
The association also notes that an all-DAB nation would provide a lot less service to motoring tourists without digital radios in their cars. "This proposed change means that most visitors will not be able to listen to national channels or public radio for emergency alerts, traffic or other important information", the group said in a media release e-mailed to El Reg. It claims that a focus on large broadcasters would leave FM investments by community radio stranded.
The local broadcasters are backed by the Progress Party, a partner in the coalition government in Norway, [as well as by] the Greens.
Related: Norway to be First Nation to Switch Off National Analog FM Stations
(Score: 3, Informative) by VLM on Tuesday April 28 2015, @05:35PM
because the government standardized it by granting a sole source monopoly to one vendor of both transmitters and receivers
Yes google around for "HD Radio(TM)" and ibiquity corporation in the USA, and DAB for pretty much the rest of the world.
DAB has its own unique problems, being so old it predates mp3, so logically an incompatible / semicompatible DAB+ has been released.
DAB is 100% free open and royalty free, and unsurprisingly everything ibiquity touches involves paying substantial licensing fees, including for receivers. They're pretty hungry for money considering how little they do compared to their DAB "competitors" who are free. Its pretty much a microsoft vs linux story.
ibiquity was pushing for all cell phones to have a FCC required broadcast radio in them awhile back. Because smartphone users listen to so much AM radio, of course, now that they have streaming internet usage, LOL.